Niladri Bije is the last ritual of Rath Yatra that falls on the Asadha Shukla Paksha Trayodashi tithi. It is the home coming ceremony of the deities, Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Sudarshan. One by one, the deities are taken inside the main temple, via Jay Vijaya entrance, from their respective chariots with a ceremonial procession. After one deity is placed on the Ratna Singhashan, the procession for another deity begins. This is known as ‘Goti Pahandi’.
It is a very interesting ritual as after Lord Sudarshan, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra enters the temple, Goddess Lakshmi closes the main door of the temple. She does not allow him to enter the temple premises in retaliation for not letting her accompany him to Gundicha Temple. He tries to convince her but she refuses to let him in. A tug of war breaks out between the servitors representing Goddess Lakshmi and the servitors representing Lord Jagannath in front of the temple. The fight concludes when Lord Jagannath confesses his mistakes and offers ‘Rasagollas’ to his consort. Goddess Lakshmi calms down and accepts his apology and allows him to enter Shrimandir. The doors are opened and Lord Jagannath finally enters the temple, drawing the curtain on the grand annual event. This auspicious day is also observed as “Rasagolla Dibasa” in Odisha.
